What Happened In Between
by crazyhpcfan
Summary: A one-shot focusing on the missing scenes in the last 10 minutes of the movie. My first MOS fic.


"No, Zod, no, "Clark begged. But the other Kryptonian was relentless. The family was now trapped. Zod will surely kill them. In desperation, Clark twisted Zod's head to redirect his heat vision away from the family. That was when he heard the sickening crunch of breaking bone.

He looked down to see Zod's limp body, his neck at an unnatural angle. With a sickening realization, Clark realized what he had done. He had killed Zod.

He turned to see Lois making her way towards him, sympathy on her face. He just fell into her arms, and started sobbing. Lois held him in her arms, offering as much comfort as she could.

"I can't believe that I killed him," he said anguished.

"Clark, you had no choice. Zod was just too far gone. He would have killed all those people, and you as well if you hadn't stopped him," Lois tried to reassure him.

"It's not just Zod. How about all those people who might have died while I was fighting with him? The fight was brutal, it was violent, and you can't tell me that no one died during it."

Lois had nothing to say to that.

"I can't kill. I won't kill. I never want to feel that way again." Clark's voice was firm.

A few more tears made their way down his cheeks. "Please, can you stay with me tonight? I don't want to be alone."

Lois nodded. She hated Zod. Hated him for breaking someone like Clark, who had done nothing wrong. Zod had forced Clark's hand, as if to prove that Clark was no better than he was, that Clark would have it in him to kill.

"I know that you wouldn't have done it if you had any choice. Clark, he forced your hand. If you hadn't killed him, he would have killed that family. You had no choice," she said. But the words offered little comfort.

The week after, a service was held in memory of all those who had been killed in the Kryptonian attack. Thousands had died. The damage was estimated in the millions. Lex Luthor, philanthropist, billionaire and businessman, offered to foot the bill for the reconstruction.

It might have been cynical of her, but Lois smelt a rat. She just didn't buy Luthor's explanation of wanting to help. And she saw the way he looked at Clark. It was stubble, but it was there. Hatred and suspicion. Not that Luthor was the only one who looked at Clark like that, but there was just something off, something she couldn't quite put her finger on that got her reporter's instincts tingling.

She made a mental note to start investigating Luthor sometime later. She just knew that there would be a juicy story behind it.

Lois hated the way Clark pushes himself so hard to help with the reconstruction. He must have had 3 hours of sleep in the past week, being too busy with helping people to worry about mundane things like food and rest.

She confronted him that night. "Clark, you need to rest, to eat. You haven't been taking care of yourself lately. You can't go on like this!"

He shook his head. "But I have to help. There's still so much to be done, and not everyone trusts me to help." He turned towards her, anguish in his eyes. "All I want to do is help. Can't they see that?"

Lois' face softened. "Is that why you're pushing yourself so hard? You're doing it so that people would be more inclined to trust you?"

He nodded. "It's not working as well as I thought it would."

Lois wrapped her arms around him and held him in her arms. This was affecting him so badly; she wished that there was a way for her to help. Suddenly an idea struck her. She smiled. "Clark, how about giving me an interview for the Daily Planet?"

The next day, she sent an article titled _I Spent the Night with Superman _to Perry. The interview made the front page. She didn't tell anyone that she did spend the night with Superman, comforting him in his sorrow and grief. That little titbit was only for herself and Clark.

"Really Clark?" Lois asked in delight.

He nodded. "My application has been accepted. You're looking at the Daily Planet's newest reporter."

She threw her arms around him and hugged him tight. "Perry was saying something about me getting a partner. Is it you?"

Clark nodded.

Lois' grin widened. "Just remember one thing Smallville, I'm the senior partner, the top banana."

"I wouldn't have it any other way Lois."

It was two weeks later that she welcomed him to the Planet. Only the two of them knew the deeper meaning of what she told him. As they smiled at each other, Lois felt sure that they had the beginnings of something special.

Lois Lane and Clark Kent. It sounded so wonderful, just like it was meant to be.

_Fin._


End file.
